U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Alabama's attorney general is appealing a recent ruling that declared the state's death penalty sentencing system unconstitutional.

Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange says Jefferson County Circuit Court Judge Tracie Todd doesn't have the authority to prevent the state from seeking the death penalty against defendants who are charged with capital murder.

In Alabama death penalty cases, juries recommend sentences but judges have the final say. It’s not uncommon for state judges to overturn a jury recommendation of life in prison in favor of the death penalty.

Federal wildlife officials want a plant they say is found only in Georgia and Alabama to be classified as "threatened."

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says it is seeking the designation for the Georgia rockcress. The plant has been a candidate for listing as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act since 2000.

Wildlife officials also want about 786 acres of river bluff habitat designated as the plant's critical habitat. That land includes parts of six counties in Georgia and parts of seven counties in Alabama.